If you have not heard by now, the simple addition of a small glass of red wine to your diet each day can not only help you live longer, but healthier. Doctors have concluded studies, mostly on the French who have a higher intake of fatty foods and cholesterol, and found the French with a much lower rate of heart disease. Researchers attributed this phenomena to the fact that their daily intake of red wine is much higher than anywhere else in the world.

For many years doctors and scientists have known of the link but have never been able to pin point this association until recently when 60 minutes aired it on their show. Scientists have determined that biologically active flavonoids, a natural substance found in red grapes and their stems, "contain some of the most powerful antioxidants yet discovered'. These antioxidants were determined to be seven times more potent than vitamin C, E, and beta carotene says Dr. Bagchi, lead researcher of the Creighton team at Creighton University in Nebraska.

Dr. Hackman of the University of California in Davis, says "flavonoids are important for neutralizing harmful free radicals which may be a cause of many chronic and degenerative diseases such as certain types of cancer, heart disease, cataracts, and rheumatoid arthritis, as well as the aging process itself". Dr. Hackman goes on to say that flavonoids "reduce blood platelet stickiness allowing the blood to flow more smoothly through vessels, thereby reducing our risk of heart attack and stroke". Technical data on the research of flavonoids and the reduction of heart attacks and strokes can be found in the Journal of American Medical Association, Oct. 1995 vol. 274 pgs 1197-1198. Technical data on the research of flavonoids and the reduction of heart attacks and strokes can be found in the Journal of American Medical Association, Oct. 1995 vol. 274 pgs 1197-1198.